The Nobel Peace Prize for 2017 goes to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN)

09. Oct 2017

The Nobel Peace Prize for 2017 goes to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN)

The Norwegian Nobel Committee has decided to award the Nobel Peace Prize for 2017 to the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN).

"The organisation (ICAN) is receiving the award for its work to draw attention to the catastrophic humanitarian consequences of any use of nuclear weapons and for its ground-breaking efforts to achieve a treaty-based prohibition of such weapons," said Norway's Nobel committee president Berit Reiss-Andersen.

The Norwegian committee that chooses the winner sorted through more than 300 nominations for this year's award, which recognises both accomplishments and intentions. The award is announced in October, but is, as always, handed out on December 10 - the anniversary of Alfred Nobel's death.

The Norwegian Nobel Committee was established by the Norwegian Storting in 1897, tasked with selecting Nobel Peace Prize laureates. This body, in turn, established the organizational home of the Nobel Peace Prize, the Norwegian Nobel Institute in 1904. The Committee operates independently from the Norwegian government.